


Baking Memories

by ginatoldmeso



Series: Tom Hiddleston/Loki One-shots and Imagines [2]
Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: But mostly fluff, Christmas, Christmas Cookies, Christmas Decorations, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Grief/Mourning, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Loki - Freeform, Past Character Death, Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-03
Updated: 2018-12-03
Packaged: 2019-09-06 15:30:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16835425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ginatoldmeso/pseuds/ginatoldmeso
Summary: Loki doesn’t understand why you care so much about Christmas, but he’s determined to find out the truth.





	Baking Memories

__

_Loki raised his head from the book he was reading as soon as Y/N entered the living room. She was still talking on the phone, her eyebrows knitted together for the disappointment. “Really? Are you sure you can’t make it? Yeah, no- I understand. Bye”. She threw herself on the sofa, still staring at the phone as if it had betrayed her somehow.  
_

_“Something wrong?”, asked the god, making her snap out of her haze._

_Y/N sighed. “Your brother won’t be here for the Christmas party tonight. He said something about Jane, she’s in NY for a few days so they’ll spend the evening together”._

_Loki observed her as she played with her hair. “So?”_

_“What do you mean so?”, she repeated, widening her eyes. She was clearly surprised by the lack of reaction he was showing._

_“I thought you were the one who kept telling him to call her”, observed Loki, cocking an eyebrow. “You said something about getting off of his ass and stop being a coward”. The memory still managed to make him smile as he talked._

_Y/N huffed. “Yes, I’m happy for them, I suppose”. After more than a year living together, Loki knew way too well there was something bothering her. The only problem was that he couldn’t understand what it was, and he didn’t want to say something that might hurt her. What they had was one thing he couldn’t mess up. Under his careful gaze, she took a deep breath before confessing. “Everyone cancelled. We were supposed to decorate the house together and have dinner together before everyone left for the holiday, but they can’t make it”._

_Loki put down his book and slid closer to her to give her a kiss. “Y/N, I don’t see what’s the big deal. It’s just a stup-”, he interrupted himself as she rolled her eyes and he started again. “It’s just a Midgardian celebration, you have plenty of those. And it’s not like you never see the others, it’ll be fine”, he chuckled._

_Y/N observed his hands over hers, chewing her lower lip in thought. “I know, but we see each other during missions and meetings! This was an occasion to spend some quality time together, you know, like a family”._

_“I thought I was part of your family”. An unfamiliar feeling was burning in Loki’s chest._

_“Of course you are!”, exclaimed Y/N hastily as her eyes went round. “That’s not what I meant, Loki, and you know it. I love being just the two of us, I love spending time together… and I love that we’re a family”, she smiled, caressing his cheek. “It’s just- Christmas is about celebrating with the people you love. All of them”_

_“I see”, nodded Loki after a brief silence. “I’m sorry your dinner is ruined”. His voice betrayed no emotion, and though he didn’t seem angry there was something rigid in his expression._

_“Loki…”, murmured Y/N with a sigh. “Are you angry with me?”_

_He must have sensed the guilt in her voice because he immediately plastered a tender smile on his face. “Of course not, love”, he assured, and she smiled back._

_A few minutes later, Y/N got up. “I need to get a bit of fresh air”. She grabbed her coat and kissed Loki without another word, before rushing out of the building._

*********

You traced the outline of your name written on the coffee cup, as your legs swung from the park bench. The warmth of your breath caused little clouds to float from your lips and dissolve into the freezing December air. You smiled faintly, staring at the long branches hovering over you: the bench was placed exactly under an old pine tree, and the copious needles shielded your gaze from the white sky. Not that it mattered, since you only had eyes for the small incision on one of the biggest branches, where someone had carved a little _‘H’_.

“Is everything all right, dear?”

The sudden voice startled you, and you turned your head sharply to see an elderly man looking at you with concern. “Yes!”, you mumbled, “Yes, I was just… lost in my thoughts”. You threw one more glance at the tree before focusing on the man. He looked oddly familiar.

After you invited him to sit, he smiled back at you and his eyes fell on your hands. “Is that you?”.

You blinked in confusion. It took you a moment to understand what he was talking about, then your gaze followed his and stopped on the picture in your hand. Two little girls with Santa hats and identic wide grins, playing in the snow. You had almost forgotten you had taken it out of your wallet where you had been keeping it for years. “It is. Me and my little sister, Hayley. We came here to play all the time when we were little”. You couldn’t hold back a chuckle.

“But not anymore?”, inquired the man with a slight frown. “What happened?”

You exhaled, as your fingertips gently caressed the two figures in the picture. “She died when I was 15. She was sick”. You didn’t add anything else. It wasn’t a topic you usually brought up in a casual conversation, and that was already more than you had ever shared with anyone.

“I’m sorry”. The man’s sincere words lingered in the air and you met his eyes. A pair of vivid green eyes stared back at you, cunning and haunted. You would’ve known those eyes anywhere, because they were home to you.

You turned away to look at the snow falling and smiled to yourself, as the snowflakes silently reached the ground. “Christmas was our thing, you know”, you started explaining. Your voice was filled with affection, and the words were flowing out of your mouth as if they had a life of their own. “Every year the whole family decorated the house with lights and garlands, and Hayley and I made gingerbread cookies for everyone so that we could all eat them by the fire and share our wishes”. You could almost perfectly remember the taste of spices and sugar melting in your mouth, even after all those years.

“Your wishes?”

“Yeah, it’s just a silly thing she had read in some book. _‘Christmas wishes always come true’_ , or something like that”, you giggled, rolling your eyes. You used to mock your sister for her naivety, yet now you were the one rambling about the magic of Christmas. “So we ate the cookies and we made our wishes, and then mom and dad made dinner for everyone”, you shrugged. After a short silence, a half smile made its way on your face as you stared into the distance. “One day I’ll do the same thing for my children”. You pretended not to notice the man’s smirk at your statement… you just let it pass, like you’d do with a shooting star while secretly hoping for your dreams to come true.

For a moment none of you two spoke. Then you felt his gaze on you once again. “You must miss her”

You sighed, weighing your words before answering. “I do, but- I feel her closer during the holidays. Like she’s here with me”.

The man nodded, pursing his lips. “Well”, he smiled standing up, “It’s time for me to go. Have a merry Christmas, dear”

“Thanks, you too!”, you said as you shook his hand. Once he disappeared from your sight, you snorted in soft amusement. “See you at home, Loki”.

*****

When you stepped into the house, you had to double-check the name on the doorbell, because what you found wasn’t exactly how you recalled your home to be just a couple of hours before. “Oh my…”. The words got stuck in your throat, as you dropped your purse on the floor and wandered speechless across the living room. Your eyes were filled with red, green and gold, and everything around you was light.

Every bit of the room was adorned with fresh holly and mistletoe, and in the corner, a perfectly trimmed Christmas tree (the biggest one you had ever had) touched the ceiling. But the most incredible thing was that instead of your classic fairy lights, dozens of small warm lights floated magically in the air like little will-o’-whisps. You chuckled to yourself, the enraptured expression still plastered on your face. A sudden clang coming from the kitchen, followed by a series of colourful imprecations, caused you to snort and shake your head in amusement. As it happened with the living room, entering the kitchen made you stop dead in your tracks. “What the-”

At the sound of your voice, Loki turned to face you. “Hey!”, he beamed. He was wearing jeans and a green sweater with a reindeer on it, and his raven hair was tied in a bun, though some rebel strands fell on his eyes. He gestured vaguely at the counter, where dispatched eggshells lied on a bed of flour and an open cookbook was balanced on the kitchen scales. “I was trying to bake something but the stupid batter won’t cooperate”.

You bit down your lower lip, trying not to laugh. “You should try and tell the batter you’re Loki of Asgard and you’re burdened with glorious purpose, maybe that’ll work”, you joked, brushing a bit of flour from his cheek and pressing your lips against his as he grinned. “Did you use your god-like powers to create Christmas decorations?”, you asked with a content sigh as he wrapped his arms around you.

“What do you mean god-like, I am a god!”, he replied in mock resentment, before chuckling and bringing a hand to your face. “Do you like it?”, he asked, staring at you expectantly as he gently stroked your cheek with his thumb.

“I love it. It’s perfect, thank you”. You were hoping that he could read the gratitude in your eyes because you weren’t able to find words good enough to thank him. You glanced at the cookbook, open on the gingerbread recipe. “But why would you do this? You don’t particularly care for Christmas”

Loki shrugged. “It was important for you. Hence, it’s deeply important for me”

“How did I get so lucky?”, you purred, grinning up at him while his grip on you tightened. “Though I have to ask… **Where did all of this mistletoe come from?** ”

The god cocked a brow. “I didn’t _steal_ it, if that’s what you’re asking. And I’m very offended that you think I would do that! Only because I’m the God of Mischief doesn’t mean I’m a kleptomaniac”, he scoffed.

You nodded, and your lips curled. “So you stole it”

“Very much so”, he nodded with a smirk, making you burst into laughter.

After a moment a sudden thought popped into your mind, making you frown. “Wait, didn’t you kill someone with mistletoe? Baldur or something like that? I think I’ve read it in some book about Norse mythology”.

Loki rolled his eyes and scoffed dramatically. “That’s entirely inaccurate, _and_ offensive. Honestly, the things you Midgardians come up with sometimes… I didn’t _kill_ him, I just slightly injured him”, he clarified with a nonchalant shrug. “With an arrow through his chest, if you wanna know”

“Yeah, I think I don’t wanna know”, you murmured patting on his shoulder, and he snickered.

“Smart”, he winked. “Anyway, I’m going to tame those cookies and then, you and I are going to watch a Christmas movie”

Your eyebrows rose at once, and you stared at Loki sceptically. “You complained for weeks when I made you watch _Elf_ ”

“That’s cause the protagonist is completely unrelatable. No real person can be _that_ cheerful”, groaned Loki in response, before flashing you a lopsided grin. “I like the Grinch, though”

“Okay”, you yielded as your chest vibrated with laughter. “But I’m helping you with the baking”, you stated firmly, fearing for the safety of your kitchen.

“Oh, thank goodness”, breathed Loki, clearly relieved. He looked at you with widened eyes. “I have no idea what I’m doing”. You snorted, shaking your head. The almighty God of Mischief, defeated by gingerbread men.

Soon a dense scent of spices filled the kitchen. As you two joked around and you tried to teach him how to bake, he gestured at his new outfit. “How do I look?”

“Mmh, cute”, you hummed in appreciation, taking in the sight of him. A glint of mischief appeared in your eyes, as you added: “Though I think I liked you better as a sweet old man”. Once your words reached him his eyes widened in surprise. He opened his mouth and you could tell he was about to apologize, so you shook your head vehemently. “It’s okay”. And it really was. You know he just wanted to help you, you didn’t need an apology, not from him.

He stood there for a moment, uncertain of what to do, then he tilted up your chin and kissed you passionately. “I love you”, he breathed, his lips only an inch apart from yours. He smirked. “It’s gonna sound unbelievable coming from me but, I love you more than I love bothering Thor”

“You do not!”, you gasped dramatically before you started giggling.

“I do”, he nodded while he picked up a cookie from the baking tray, “Even though right now it’s a tie between you and this cookie”. You laughed, biting the piece of cookie he was offering you.

You spent your night exactly as you used to do as a child, laughing and singing along to Christmas songs while the logs burned in the fireplace, sipping hot apple cider. The only things you would never have expected as a kid were the magic lights dancing around you and Loki’s arms holding you close. When the time came to make your wishes, you sank your teeth into the warm gingerbread without hesitating… you had nothing to wish for other than the life you already had.

And when you wondered what a god might desire, Loki was already answering the question. “Merry Christmas, my love”, he whispered against the shell of your ear. “I can’t wait till we’ll be doing this with our children”


End file.
